Chapter 183 - Element-ary, My Dear.

"My name is Elore, and I'll be your instructor for this lecture," The woman said, "Welcome to your orientation."

It seemed that little bit of showmanship had caused Merlin's stream to explode, but upon looking closer, most of the spam consisted of the word "Mommy".

'Oh dear god,' Merlin thought to himself as he turned his attention back to the lecture.

"I'll begin by listing each of the elements, and in turn, I'll give you a little bit of insight about myself," Elore said before taking another sip of her pipe.

Elore exhaled the smoke directly into the air, where it took the form of a small wyvern that began flying around for a few moments before dissipating.

"As you can see, I control smoke. Well, this is partially true," She said, "Rather, this is an advanced application of the air element, one of the six elements that a wizard can utilise."

"Air, Water, Fire, Earth, Light and Dark," Elore spoke each word out slowly, "These six elements make up the primal forces of this world, and as wizards, you will eventually learn to harness and weave this power to serve your own purposes."

"This is not to say that you can harness all of them at once. No, the life of a single human is much too short to even grasp the true mastery of one."

"Instead, you will dedicate yourself to one of the six elements, this is a process that we call attunement." Elore declared, "You will infuse your body and soul with your chosen element before setting out on the endless journey of magic."

A couple of the students let out faint noises of excitement, while others seemed to groan with anxiety.

"Some of you may be wondering how you will know if you made the right choice or not, or if you could change your element at a later time." She said, "The answer to that first question is that you'll likely know when the time comes, and for the second, while unnecessary in most circumstances, the answer is yes, although there are a number of caveats one must take into account if they decide to do so..."

"For now, I'll briefly cover the six elements and their functions, but the act of selecting the right element for you is often intuitive," Elore said before exhaling more smoke into the air, forming peaceful clouds above her head.

"We'll start off with what most people consider to be the most destructive element, Fire."

"Often considered wild, destructive and unpredictable, Fire is often the first element a young wizard has in mind when considering combat magic."

"The power to summon balls of fire, generate scorching heat, or summon white flames that burn so hot they can melt through armour. Fire is suited well for a battlefield, but if you wish to utilise this magic, be wary you do not lose control for the results may be catastrophic."

Most of the students seemed convinced that fire was for them, based on their excited muffled squeals.

It was understandable, throwing fireballs was one of the most iconic aspects of magic.

"Then we'll move on to the antithesis of fire, Water. The element of adaptability, often considered to be more suited to a support role on the battlefield, however, do not underestimate the combat potential of a water mage."

"It doesn't need to be said, but the power to protect from, and extinguish, flames are very valuable abilities to have due to the popularity of fire magic. The domain of water also gives access to that of ice and snow. Spells of which hold incredible value in a wide variety of circumstances."

It seemed as though the teacher was leaning pretty heavily into the countering of the fire magic part, it was likely that too many wizards continued to choose the fire element each year and she was making an attempt to balance it out.

"Next, we'll talk about my element, Air. The element of freedom and mobility. Often disregarded and thought of as the weakest element amongst those without a strong grasp on magic."

"While it is true that air cannot split the earth in half or set countless forests ablaze, those who underestimate an air mage are often helpless when their feet are swept from under them by the raging force of a tempest." Elore said, "Some who practice this element eventually learn to harness the raw potential of the storm, allowing them to invoke the destructive force of lightning."

As she spoke these words, the clouds of smoke hovering above her head had darkened and the sound of rolling thunder filled the room, causing several students to audibly jerk back in their seats.

"Now, the sturdiest of the elements, Earth. The element of resilience."

"This is another element that is more support oriented in the eyes of many."

"Earth users often focus on defensive magic rather than offensive, but that is not to say that an earth mage cannot deal significant damage when required."

"For an element of magic that is so rigid, the earth element tends to have the widest reach in domains. Those who lean into earth magic may even find themselves influencing nature to a degree, and those with dwarven ancestry may find that you resonate well with crystals and ore."

"Now, this next one may overlap somewhat with the powers granted through faith, the element of Light."

"The element of purity, one that encompasses not only the power of healing and purification but also the destructive potential of light."

"This element is very popular with members of the temple with magic potential, as it blends well with the powers granted to them by their gods and is very effective against some of the more dangerous enemies of humanity, such as the undead and demonic creatures."

Merlin immediately thought of Bibar, the Hecate worshipper who ravaged a large group of the undead with a rain of golden fire.

"And last, but definitely not least, is the element of Darkness."

Merlin perked up, knowing for certain that this was the path he'd go down once more.

"Foolish individuals may consider the dark element to be that of evil, due to how many terrible monsters in this world harness it, but the dark element is just like any other."

"It is the user who bends the magic to fit their evil intent, not the other way around."

"The dark element is one of the least researched elements due to this stigma, but it holds domain over most of the magic you've likely heard about in stories.. The power of curses, the power to weave shadows, and although considered taboo by the temple, it also covers the power to raise the dead."